October 18, 2009 - 1:43pm
Bagel bagel bagel
Okay, all you chemistry people: I bought some 'kansui lye water' at my friendly Oriental market and I am wondering if it can be used when boiling bagels? The label reads " potassium carbonate & sodium bicarbonate solution" "use 1 part solution to 50 parts water to refresh dried squid"- so, whaddya think? I bought it to use when making Chinese noodles.
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I don't use lye water for making bagels. IMO it's just too risky and unnecessary. I use Peter Reinharts's baking soda method instead.
Are you using the steam method or boiling method.
I haven't tried lye on my bagels (yet), but lye is Sodium Hydroxide, and your stuff doesn't contain it. Sodium bicarbonate is baking soda, which I have used and was happy with for my bagels. Still, despite the potential hazards, I intend to give lye a shot one day.
I just made some bagels with PR's recipe and forgot to add the baking soda to the water and they came out fine. Somehow your product sounds "fishy" for my taste.
Oh yes; the PR bagel forumula works fine without the baking soda. The only thing the soda really does is increase the chewiness of the end product. Eliminating the soda reduces the sodium level in the bagel so it's a good idea to leave it out if your diet restricts salt.
I use baking soda when making bagels but I was just curious if this stuff I got would work. I know there has been a great deal of discussions about using lye water for boiling bagels. I tried making pretzel rolls and using the amount of baking soda that the recipe called for left a metallic taste to the rolls, ehich I didn't care for. And yes, restricitng my sodium intake is always a good idea. Hence, the curiosity about the kan sui water. Still researching...
Amaz.